Goddard Space Flight Center
Planetary Systems Laboratory

Planetary Systems Laboratory


Picture of John C. Brasunas

John C. Brasunas

Planetary Systems Laboratory
NASA/GSFC, Code 693.0
Greenbelt, MD 20771

Phone: (301) 286-3488

Email: John Brasunas


Current Position


    Astrophysicist, Planetary Systems Laboratory

EDUCATION


1974 - A.B., Physics, Princeton University
1976 - A.M., Physics, Harvard University
1981 - Ph.D., Physics, Harvard University

Professional Experience


    Research Area Experience 1999- 2002: P.I., Lightweight Fourier Transform Spectrometer (HTSFTS) PIDDP
    1991-:96 P.I., SIRIS Spectre Ground Campaign
    1990- 1998: P.I., High Tc Sensor PIDDP
    1988-89: P.I., High Tc Sensor DDF
    1988-: Co. I., Cassini CIRS
    1984-88: Co. I., SIRIS Balloon Team

    APPOINTMENTS: 1981-84 Member of the Technical Staff, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
    1984-85 Science Systems and Applications, Seabrook, MD.

PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES


AAAS, AAS, APS, OSA, AGU

AWARDS AND HONORS


National Merit Finalist
Election to Sigma Xi
A.B. magna cum laude
Smithsonian Pre-Doctoral Fellow
Listed in American Men and Women of Science

CONFERENCE LEADERSHIP POSITIONS


1988-Proceedings of High-Tc Superconductors: Magnetic Interactions, Panel Moderator for Thin Film Applications, NIST/Gaithersburg.
1990-Advances in Materials Science and Applications of High Temperature Superconductor, Steering Committee and Panel Moderator for Thin film Devices, NASA/Goddard.
1990-SPIE: Superconductivity Applications for Infrared and Microwave Devices, Conference Co-Chair and Session Chair, Orlando.
1991-SPIE: Superconductivity Applications for Infrared and Microwave Devices II, Conference Co-Chair and Session Chair, Orlando.
2003-International Thermal Detectors Workshop, Session Co-Chair, Scientific Organizing Committee and Local Organizing Committee, Adelphi, MD.

REVIEWER


  • NASA Graduate Student Fellowship in Global Change Research
  • Planetary Instrument Definition and Development Program
  • Small Business Innovation Research
  • HTSSE Program at NRL
  • Applied Optics
  • Journal of Geophysical Research
  • Applied Physics Letters
  • Journal of Applied Physics
  • Applied Superconductivity Conference


  • Selected Publications


    2005  "Temperatures, Winds, and Composition in the Saturnian System", F.M. Flasar, R.K. Achterberg, B.J. Conrath, J.C. Pearl, G.L. Bjoraker, D.E. Jennings, P.N. Romani, A.A. Simon-Miller, V.G. Kunde, C.A. Nixon, B. Bézard, G.S. Orton, L.J. Spilker, J.R. Spencer, P.G. Irwin, N.A. Teanby, T.C. Owen, J. Brasunas, M.E. Segura, R.C. Carlson, A. Mamoutkine, P.J. Gierasch, P.J. Schinder, M.R. Showalter, C. Ferrari, A. Barucci, R. Courtin, A. Coustenis, T. Fouchet, D. Gautier, E. Lellouch, A. Marten, R. Prangé, D.F. Strobel, S. B. Calcutt, P.L. Read, F.W. Taylor, N. Bowles, R.E. Samuelson, M.M. Abbas, F. Raulin, P. Ade, S. Edgington, S. Pilorz, B. Wallis, E.H. Wishnow, Science, 307, 1247-1251.

    2005  "Titan's Atmospheric Temperatures, Winds, and Composition," F.M. Flasar, R.K. Achterberg, B.J. Conrath, P.J. Gierasch, V.G. Kunde, C.A. Nixon, G.L. Bjoraker, D.E. Jennings, P. N. Romani, A.A. Simon-Miller, B. Bézard, A. Coustenis, P.G.J. Irwin, N.A. Teenby, J. Brasunas, J.C. Pearl,. M.E. Segura, R.C. Carlson, A. Mamoutkine, P.J. Schinder, A. Barucci, R. Courtin, T. Fouchet, D. Gautier, E. Lellouch, A. Marten, R. Prangé, S. Vinatier, D.F. Strobel, S. B. Calcutt, P.L. Read, F.W. Taylor, N. Bowles, R.E. Samuelson, G.S. Orton, L.J. Spilker, T.C. Owen, J.R. Spencer, M.R. Showalter, C. Ferrari, M.M. Abbas, F. Raulin, S. Edgington, P. Ade, and E.H. Wishnow, Science, 308, 975-978.

    2004  "An intense stratospheric jet on Jupiter", F.M. Flasar, V.G. Kunde, R.K. Achterberg, B.J. Conrath, A.A. Simon-Miller, C.A. Nixon, P.J. Gierasch, P.N. Romani, B. Bézard, P. Irwin, G.L. Bjoraker, J.C. Brasunas, D.E. Jennings, J.C. Pearl, M.D. Smith, G.S. Orton, L.J. Spilker, R. Carlson, S.B. Calcutt, P.L Read, F.W. Taylor, P. Parrish, A. Barucci, R. Courtin, A. Coustenis, D. Gautier, E. Lellouch, A. Marten, R. Prangé, Y. Biraud, T. Fourchet, C. Ferrari, T.C. Owen, M.M. Abbas, R.E. Samuelson, F. Raulin, P. Ade, C.J.Césarsky, K.U. Grossman, A. Coradini, Nature, 427, 132-135.

    2004  "High-Tc transition-edge superconducting (TES) bolometer on a monolithic sapphire membrane - construction and performance", B. Lakew, J.C. Brasunas, S. Aslam, D.E. Pugel, Sensors Actuat. A-Phys., 114(1), 36-40.

    2004  "Jupiter's Atmospheric Composition from the Cassini Thermal Infrared Spectroscopy Experiment", V.G. Kunde, F.M. Flasar, D.E. Jennings, B. B&3233;zard, D.F. Strobel, B.J. Conrath, C.A. Nixon, G.L. Bjoraker, P.N. Romani, R.K. Achterberg, A.A. Simon-Miller, P. Irwin, J.C. Brasunas, J.C. Pearl, M.D. Smith, G.S. Orton, P.J. Gierasch, L.J. Spilker, R.C. Carlson, A.A. Mamoutkine, S.B. Calcutt, P.L. Read, F.W. Taylor, T. Fouchet, P. Parrish, A. Barucci, R. Courtin, A. Coustenis, D. Gautier, E. Lellouch, A. Marten, R. Prangé, Y. Biraud, C. Ferrarri, T.C. Owen, M.M. Abbas, R.E. Samuelson, F. Raulin, P. Ade, C.J. Céesarsky, K.U. Grossman, A. Coradini, Science, 305, 1582-1586.

    2004  "Exploring the Saturn system in the thermal infared: the composite infrared spectrometer", F.M. Flasar, V.G. Kunde, M.M. Abbas, R.K. Achterberg, P. Ade, A. Barucci, B. Bézard, G.L. Bjoraker, J.C. Brasunas, S. Calcutt, R. Carlson, C.J. Césarsky, B.J. Conrath, A. Coradini, R. Courtin, A. Coustenis, S. Edberg, S. Edgington, C. Ferrari, T. Fouchet, D. Gautier, P.J. Gierasch, K Grossman, P. Irwin, D.E. Jennings, E. Lellouch, A.A. Mamoutkine, A. Marten, J.P. Meyer, C.A. Nixon, G.S. Orton, T.C. Owen, J.C. Pearl, R. Prangé, F. Raulin, P.L Read, P.N. Romani, R.E. Samuelson, M.E. Segura, M.R. Showalter, A.A. Simon-Miller, M.D. Smith, J.R. Spencer, L.J. Spilker, and F.W. Taylor, Space Science Reviews, 115, 169-297.

    2002  "A comment on the reported detectivity of a new uncooled thermal infrared detector", J.C. Brasunas, B. Lakew, R. Fettig, Sensor Actuat. A-Phys. 96 (2-3): 211-213.

    2002  "Phase anomalies in Fourier-transform spectrometers: an absorbing beam splitter is neither sufficient nor necessary", J.C. Brasunas, Appl. Opt. 41 (13): 2481-2487.

    2002  "A simple etalon-stabilized visible laser diode", J.C. Brasunas, Meas. Sci. Technol. 13: N67-N71.

    2000  "High Tc superconducting bolometer on chemically etched 7 m thick sapphire", B. Lakew, J. C. Brasunas, A. Pique, R. Fettig, B. Mott, S. Babu, G. M. Cushman, Physica C., 329, 69.